Our personal approach to get students iGCSE ready

Posted by WingetJackson on November 21st, 2016

IGCSE English Language and Literature private tuition or small group classes

By Siân de Groot, tutor at Passion for Language

Learning is personal, and for no subject is this more true than language. It allows us to understand how each person’s views differ from another and gives us the means to express precisely what we think as individuals. Indeed, one of the key aims of English iGCSE tuition is to ‘promote personal development and an understanding of themselves and others’. This, along with technical know-how and cultural awareness, is central to students’ ability to ‘communicate accurately, appropriately, confidently and effectively’. Carefully considering this, Passion for Language believes that each of our iGCSE English language and English literature students deserve private tuition designed specifically for them. Rather than teach everyone in the same way using the same programmes, our experienced tutors tailor all our sessions according to each student’s learning style, taking carefully into account their individual strengths and struggles. This means they are fully supported, engaged and more likely to achieve success. Read on to find out just how we do this.

Understanding others, understanding themselves.

According to iGCSE syllabuses, one of the first steps in becoming a fluent communicator is to  ‘understand & respond to what you hear, read and experience’. To make accurate sense of an English text, students must be able to extract both explicit details (the obvious facts), and implicit details (implied attitudes and opinions).  Our tutors know that this is not always easy, especially when dealing with fiction and nonfiction texts that include unfamiliar words, settings and ideas. First, tutors patiently practice how to spot key information with students so that they grasp overall meaning. Then, tutors will clear up confusing concepts by discussing how they relate to their student’s personal experience.

For example, if a character is described as “exhausted” after travelling on a train for ten hours, we might dispel difficulty with this new vocabulary by asking the student how they would feel if they were to experience the same. By learning to put themselves in the shoes of characters that they encounter, students not only better understand new ideas by applying what they already know, but become critical thinkers able to imagine and evaluate situations. Possessing the skill to picture how they, or the characters involved might feel means students are better equipped to answer comprehension questions appropriately.

By personally monitoring how well students can put this process of understanding, imagining and responding into practice through weekly private tutoring or small group classes with a maximum of four students, we ensure that they fully engage in their verbal and written discussions.

Developing technical know-how.

Being able to respond means more than answering comprehension questions in a reading exam. The English iGCSE language and literature exam tests students ability to independently synthesise what they have learnt by reading and listening, in order to generate their very own spoken and written texts. They might be asked to produce letters, short stories, newspaper articles, speeches, dramatic monologues or even group debates. When we provide students with the tools they need to do this, we help them take pride in developing their unique personal style. As the syllabus suggests, eloquent expression flourishes when readers ‘enjoy and appreciate a variety of language’. Our qualified British tutors relish the opportunity to share a diverse range of texts with our students during tutorials. In doing so, they do not just bring to life the plot or setting but focus in on just what makes the best texts tick. Students become mature and analytical readers who truly understand writers’ ideas and the effects they use to convey them. Through tailored activities, students have fun playing with writing techniques from similes to synecdoche, and are closely guided on how best to integrate them into their work. Subsequently, we work one to one with students on their writing and speaking so that together, we can develop a high level of written expression and range of registers appropriate for different audiences.

Building a broader perspective

Our team of qualified tutors support students in a variety of subjects; by working together, we understand how the skills developed through English iGCSE study complement and contrast with those developed in other courses. Therefore, we’re aware that English tuition should not just develop reading and writing skills but the ‘ability to work with information and ideas in other areas of study by developing skills of analysis, synthesis and drawing of inferences’. We take the time to get to know our students and contribute to their wider capabilities. Our private tutors and language teachers use everything from poetry to prose to entrust their tutees with excellent foundational skills that are transferrable. In addition, we tap into individual’s cross-curricular strengths to promote progress in English. If it helps a student to try some measurement conversions to imagine the size of a described object or think about the geography of a setting in order to understand the political context of a conflict, our knowledgeable tutors will make the link. Once students are used to making connections in this way, they will be able to give more assured comprehension answers and more informed creative responses.

Passion for Language has our students’ best interests at heart. Building contextual and technical awareness into our one-to-one private tutorials, we nurture candidates’ communication ability by paying close attention to what works for them. 

Our students’ personal journey to iGCSE success:

1)     Pre-tuition assessments: From the get go, we make sure we understand our students and our families. In our initial assessment, we will evaluate our student’s current capabilities, interests and character before making a concrete plan for how to improve.

2)     Tailored lesson planning: Before starting tutorials, we work as a team to produce a programme that each individual will find rewarding, challenging and productive. After each lesson, the tutor will evaluate progress made and constantly consider ways to improve.

3)     Listening to your needs: If our students or their families have any concerns, then we are here to help. Simply get in touch and we can provide personalised advice to reassure and support you.

If you’d like to know more about our tuition services, or would like to discuss how we can support your child in their iGCSE study, please email info@passionforlanguage.com

For More information  Visit At: British Tutors In Hong Kong